The Guardian
by fictionette
Summary: We trusted him. Well, correction. Charles trusted him. Charles was just a trusting person, unfortunately. I never trusted him. But I didn't say anything. Because Charles trusted him and that was enough for me. I really wish I'd spoken up now. Charles/OC
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: ...I am so sorry but I couldn't help myself. I know that I already have two stories on the go and that I've developed this habit of not completing stories that I've started but if I'm being honest they're not really a reflection of my best work anyways and I knew that in the long run they would run out of steam. I will eventually go back and edit them but right now, I want to write something that actually might have a little smidgeon of quality. I have left no stone unturned in the terms of this story; I even filled out 100 questions about my character that I found on deviantart. I've written down details that I'm pretty sure have no relevance to the story but I wrote them down in case they did and just as an excercise to flesh out my character and make her seem more real. Hopefully this story will be a little different to all of the other Charles/OC fics floating around, the main difference probably being that this stroy is set seven years before the events of X-Men: First Class when Charles was at Oxford. But okay, enough rambling, on with the show! (And by the way does anyone feel slightly wrong about finding Charles Xavier attractive in X-Men: First Class when you watch the old X-Men films with Patrick Stewart? I feel so dirty...)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything apart from Abi. But she is pretty kick-ass if I do say so myself.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 1<strong>

We trusted him. Well, correction. Charles trusted him. I don't particularly know why. It isn't like he'd even done anything to earn that trust. Charles was just a trusting person, unfortunately. I never trusted him. He was too reckless and was willing to do anything for his petty revenge. And because of him Charles would never be the same again. It was all his fault…no it wasn't. It was my fault. I could have done something. But I panicked. I knew that it wouldn't work if I panicked and I did it anyway. Charles had taught me how to calm my mind to get the results I wanted. It took him years. That would be years of training that amounted to nothing because I couldn't perform when it counted. I almost lost him…all for his petty revenge. I didn't trust him for a reason. He was dividing us and turning us against each other, like he did to Raven. He was sly about it, very sly. But I'm not stupid. I could see what he was doing and I didn't say anything. Because Charles trusted him and that was enough for me. I really wish I'd spoken up now.

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><p>There are those moments in life that you just know are going to change everything. Whether it is the loss of a loved one, the birth of a new one or getting the job opportunity of a lifetime. For me, it was meeting Charles Francis Xavier. I met him and I knew that everything was going to change…<p>

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><p>September 1955, Oxford University<p>

Classes had only just started and I was already drowning in papers. I loved history, I wouldn't have taken it otherwise. But the workload was just…ridiculous! I'd only been there a week and I practically live in the library already. The history of the British Isles, as fascinating as it is, was not how I wanted to spend my Friday night.

Sat in the most secluded corner, I leafed through the stack of books both assigned by my professor and recommended by the librarian. It was almost peaceful, surrounded by centuries of old texts…I'm such a boring person.

It was nearly closing time when I heard the footsteps on the wooden floor. My curiosity peaked as I wondered who else could possibly be here at this hour. Looking up, a man with the most intense pair of blue eyes rounded one of the shelves to face me. He smiled at me and I politely smiled back before going back to my books. We stayed like that for a few minutes, me reading about the history of Scotland and him leaning against a bookcase watching me, the only sound the soft flutter of a page being turned. It was actually quite disconcerting, silently being watched; definitely not a nice feeling. Daring to glance back at him, I shyly smiled at him again and he returned it with a bright one of his own. For a few more minutes we stayed that way, staring at each other and wondering who would speak first.

"It's nice to know that there's someone else like me here." He finally said cheerfully.

Confused and also slightly shocked that he had spoken at all, I replied. "What do you mean?"

"You know, a mutant." And his smile never wavered.

Mine, however, did. In fact, it very well slid off my face. He couldn't possibly know. Almost nobody knew. A feeling of dread settled in my stomach and I could have sworn that I actually felt all of the blood drain from my face. What did this mean? How could he know? He said that he was a mutant too, was that his power? Predicting other people's abilities? There was an awkward silence as I contemplated what to say next. I forced my lips to twitch upwards and tried to diffuse the situation with humour.

"Is that your pick up line?" I laughed breezily. "Because if you actually intend on getting any girls, I would suggest not calling them a mutant."

And he laughed. He actually laughed at my awful attempt of a joke. "I suppose it does need a little bit of work." He shrugged, that annoying little grin never leaving his face. "Doesn't change who, or should I say what, you are though and you are mutant." He said with the smile of a man who knew he was right. I hated that smile.

Coughing to break the silence, I pretending to go back to reading my book. "No, I'm afraid you have the wrong girl." I insisted, wanting nothing more for him to leave.

There was a small silence and then, strangely, he nodded. "Ah yes, of course. Terribly sorry to take up your time. I'll be leaving now. Just forget I was ever here." And as quickly as he had appeared, he disappeared.

Taking in a shaky breath, I stared at the place he had stood. That was…weird. I couldn't believe he'd just taken my word for it and left. Definitely weird. It was almost as if he knew but I knew that he couldn't. I could count all of the people who knew on my hands. Deciding to just shake it off as a prank or the drunken ramblings of a student who was having much more fun than me on his Friday night, I returned to my studies.

I heard the scraping almost immediately after, like the sound of a chair on wooden flooring (which it probably was). Perhaps the strange man had decided to take up residence in a different part of the library. And then the footsteps began again, sounding as if they were walking in my direction. My stomach sank as the thought of the man with the infuriating smile appearing around the corner with a chair to sit next to me flashed across my mind. Sure enough, the blue-eyed man re-appeared heaving a chair with him.

But instead of placing the chair at my table, he hoisted it above his head and threw it at me.

I didn't think. The only thought running through my head was that there was a reasonably large piece of furniture hurtling towards my head that had the potential to splatter my brains across the library walls if I didn't do something fast. Well, to be more accurate my only really coherent thought was "CRAP!" Without this thought process, I acted instinctively and flung my arm out in front of me. The purple field materialised before I knew what I'd done, stopping the chair mid-flight as it hit the barrier.

I was so stunned that all I could do was stare at him with my mouth opening and closing as I struggled to find something to say.

"You just threw a chair at me!" Thirteen years of schooling, A's across the board and an IQ of 148 and that was the best answer I could come up with. I was ashamed.

If it were possible, his smile became even brighter. _Yes, I did, how astute of you._

It was at that moment that I almost fell out of my chair.

"You just…_spoke…_to me…in my head." All of that money spent on my private education...what a waste.

_Yes I did._

"Please stop doing that." I all but begged, slumping in my chair.

It was too much to take in. I'd lived eighteen years of my life thinking that I was the only different one; the only person who could do things that other people couldn't. But here was a man who could speak to me in my head. He was _telepathic! _That wasn't normal! Not like I was one to judge. I didn't know whether to be happy or saddened by this news. In one respect I was reassuring to know that I wasn't the only freak and I had so much I wanted to talk to him about. But on the other hand, I quite liked the idea of being the only different one. It was one of the only things that made me unique, special…

"You are very special indeed." I gasped and quickly looked up. Of course; he could hear everything I was saying in my head. "Yes I can. Are we quite done?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

Mouth wide open, I could do nothing but nod.

"Good. Now I'm sure you have plenty of questions and it is getting quite late so if you would ask them quickly please." And with that he sat opposite me on the chair he had thrown at me with his chin resting on his hands, staring at me with those intense eyes and a charming smile.

"…why did you throw a chair at me?" Really Abi, I have completely lost faith in you. "I mean couldn't you have just spoken to me in my mind? I think that would have been proof enough that we're alike."

"Yes," He admitted, leaning back in that damn chair. "But this way was for more interesting, don't you think?" He countered and at the same time, he threw me a cheeky wink.

I didn't know what else to do. So I laughed. I laughed so hard it physically hurt and my stomach began to ache. I just couldn't stop. This whole situation was just so…unreal. So I said as much.

He seemed quite amused by my outburst and merely nodded and said "Yes, I suppose so."

After finally forcing myself to stop laughing (not an easy feat), I stared at him in wonder.

"Who are you?" I asked in absolute fascination. He was just like me. _Me! _I thought it was too much to hope for there to be someone out there who could understand. But fate had just dropped this man into my life and I didn't have to hope anymore.

"Sorry, how rude of me. I should have introduced myself sooner. Charles Xavier." He greeted me with a smile and leant over the table, offering his hand.

"Abigail Becket, though I'm sure you already knew that." I answered coyly with a raised eyebrow of my own, accepting his handshake. "And you consider not introducing yourself rude but not throwing chairs at innocent bystanders in the library?"

He laughed. "Alright, I admit, it was a little extreme. But it got the point across didn't it?"

"Most effectively." I replied with a little laugh of my own. All of the shock and anger from first meeting him had dissipated and instead been replaced with the excitement of knowing someone I could share my experiences with.

Gazing into his mesmerizing eyes (and then looking away as I realised he'd probably heard that, his small chuckle told me that he did), I shook my head in disbelief. "How did you find me?"

He shrugged, as if it was no big deal. "I just…did." Pinning him with an unsatisfied look, he sighed. "I heard you thinking about it through my bedroom wall. You live in the dorm next to mine."

I nodded. That made sense. Though I don't know why I hadn't seen him up until tonight if we were neighbours. Then again, I had only been there a week and I was a bit of a recluse so far. My social life really did leave something to be desired.

He chuckled and I came to a realisation. He's been able to read my mind this whole time… "You've been silently laughing at me this whole time, haven't you?"

He scrunched his nose in mock-thought. "Perhaps just a little bit."

I wasn't sure whether I should be embarrassed or not. Finally, I decided not to. It was less embarrassing if you didn't acknowledge it.

I stared at him in awe. "What else can you do?"

It was then that he fixed me with the most powerful gaze I've ever seen. There was a world of wisdom and strength behind those eyes beyond his years and it was almost scary to look at him. That much power in one man was intimidating and at the same time quite…thrilling. And when he finally answered, I could have fainted under the pressure of his eyes. "More than you could possibly imagine. "He replied mysteriously.

I nodded, more to break contact than to show my understanding.

Smiling mischievously, I fixed him with a playful look, but one that had very serious implications behind it. "I'll show you mine if you show me yours."

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><p>It was that night in the library that I was sure I had stumbled upon something great. Some<em>one<em> great. The greatest man I have ever met. I knew next to nothing about him apart from for some inexplicable reason, I trusted him. That and that those twinkling baby blues and cheeky smile were going to get me in a lot of trouble.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Wow...I can't believe the massive response I've had for this story! All I can say is thank you so much. Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed especially. I love talking to people about my writing and what they think as well as talking about similar interests we may share. If anyone fancies a chat about something X-Men related, or even not, feel free to message me! So here's the next chapter and to hoping that it lives up to your expectations. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything apart from Abi.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 2<strong>

We had such an easy friendship; nothing ever seemed forced. It all just came so naturally to us. We laughed and joked like we'd known each other for years. It was the most fun I'd ever had with a person before. But more importantly, I found acceptance. There was nothing more I wanted from a friend than that and thought it sounds like something so simple, it wasn't very easy to find. But I found acceptance in Charles and it just strengthened our relationship so much. We really were the best of friends within just two weeks. Perhaps that's why Raven didn't like me.

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><p>"Abi!" He whined.<p>

"Charlie!" I whined right back.

Looking at his exaggerated "kicked puppy" face, I realized how bizarre this entire situation was. I really never thought that two weeks ago I would be sat arguing with the same man who'd thrown a chair at me about meeting his adoptive sister. Then again, I didn't really think any person I would consider being friends with would throw a chair at me. Charles was just as far from normal a man can get.

"I don't understand why you won't meet her!" He complained, collapsing onto the bench across from me.

I looked up from my book (history again), tucking a strand of hair blown out from the wind behind my ear so I could see him properly. He really was a master at getting what he wanted. Who could ever say no to those blue eyes? But I still refused.

"Why not?" He persisted. He really didn't know when to give up. "Give me one good reason why you won't meet her."

"Well," I paused as I struggled to find a good enough reason. "We've only known each other two weeks!" A rather weak reason to be honest.

"So?"

"So, don't you think that's a little soon?" I really was grasping at the proverbial straws here.

The truth was I didn't really know why I was so reluctant to meet her. More than anything I suppose I was nervous. It's like when you first go to meet your boyfriend's parents. Not that I thought about Charles in that way because that would be weird; he was more like a brother. It was a similar scenario though; you just had to replace "boyfriend" with "friend" and "parents" with "sister-who-isn't-really-his-sister-but-rather-just-a-person-he-found-stealing-from-his-fridge-that-he-offered-to-give-a-home-to". I was just so scared that she wouldn't like me, I suppose. From the way Charles spoke about her she really did mean the world to him and her opinion clearly mattered. I could only hope that we would reach that stage in our friendship. But if his sister didn't like me, would that change his opinion of me too? Would he not like me anymore? I didn't want that to happen. We'd only known each other two weeks and I felt such a strong connection with him. He was the first true friend I'd ever had.

Clearly having heard the thoughts running through my head, his face softened and he smiled at me reassuringly.

"You know I wouldn't do that." He whispered so quietly that I could barely hear him from where he was sat.

The amount of emotion in that one softly spoken sentence was all I needed to here.

I smiled and nodded at him. "I know."

Quickly switching seats so he was now sat next to me on the same bench, he reached over my shoulder to put his arm around me. "And I'm sure she'll love you." He comforted me, giving my shoulder a quick squeeze.

I turned in his arms to directly face him and shyly smiled. "I hope so." I mumbled nervously.

"She will." He insisted, tucking a piece of my hair behind my ear.

That was another thing that I loved about our relationship. We were never afraid of physical contact like is usual between a man and a woman. It was never awkward when we touched each other; hugging each other and such was completely normal and just felt natural to us. I'd never really had that sort of easy going intimacy in a friendship before and it was something that I loved experiencing with him.

Finally making my mind up, I grinned. "Okay."

"Okay?" He repeated, as if it was too much to think that I would just agree so easily. But I really did want to meet her. I was just anxious as to what she would think about me.

I prodded his nose playfully. "Yes, okay. I will meet her if it means that much to you."

He looked so delighted and his eyes just seemed to sparkle with happiness. "Thank you." He replied genuinely, leaning in to kiss my cheek.

My cheeks flushed red where he'd kissed me. As close as we were, he'd never done that before. Nobody had. I ducked my head so that my hair could fall in front of me to hide my rosy face. Charles just laughed and grabbed my hand, pulling me up to stand with him.

"Let's not waste any time then!" He said cheerfully, pulling me by my hand.

"What? We're going now?" I yelled over the wind as we ran to the dormitories.

Not breaking his stride, he looked back at me with a grin. "You don't have to be anywhere, do you?"

"Well…no." I admitted. I just wasn't expecting to meet her so soon. I expected to at least have a day or two to mentally prepare myself before being thrown into the proverbial dragon's lair.

Charles laughed. "You'll be fine!"

So the two of us ran through the courtyard together, laughing and attracting some very odd looks. But I didn't care. He never failed to cheer me up and I always had a blast when I was with him. If remaining his friend meant meeting his "sister" then I would do it. Anything that it took, I would do it to make him happy.

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><p>"Perhaps this isn't such a good idea." I muttered, now faced with the door to his dorm.<p>

He gave my hand (which he was still holding) an affectionate squeeze and gave me a tender look. "You'll be fine." He told me for what felt like the hundredth time.

Letting go of my hand, he placed them both on my shoulders and looked me straight in the eye. "Are you ready?" He asked me for the last time.

I nodded. "No."

"Good," He smiled brilliantly. "She's going to love you."

Merely groaning, I let him drag me reluctantly into his dorm with one arm around my shoulders.

You could definitely tell it was Charles's dorm. Classy and understated with entire bookshelves full of texts on biology, genetics and psychology and with a very expensive looking chess board in the corner. Yet, at the same time, you could still tell it was very much so a bachelor pad. There were plates and pans all over the kitchen area and a lot of the books that were supposed to be on the shelves were strewn across the sofas, tables and the floor along with dozens of papers he'd written.

"Sorry about the mess." He apologized with an embarrassed smile.

I waved it off. "It's fine." If anything, it made me feel slightly more relaxed. It definitely felt like a home.

He chuckled and retracted his arm from around my shoulders. "Just wait here for one moment." He asked of me and walked across to a closed door across the room. Knocking on it lightly he smiled it me before yelling for his sister to come out and meet me. He walked over to put an arm around me again when his "sister" entered the room with a confused look.

Her beauty did not help my nervousness. Long, wavy blonde hair and tall with long legs like you didn't seen in real life, it was quite intimidating for someone like me to be in the same room as her. She had such a powerful presence, one of a strong, sexy and independent woman. One who would certainly be able to keep Charles on his toes. I found myself admiring her before I even knew her.

Seeing Charles arm around me her eyes narrowed slightly and all the positive imagery I connected with her flew out the window along with whatever amount of confidence I may or may not have had.

"Who is she?" She asked almost hostilely with her arms crossed, like I wasn't welcome there.

I shrank further into Charles's arm to hide myself from her daunting gaze. _Calm yourself. _I heard his soft voice reassure me in my head. Not even he could stop that sickening feeling that I felt though. I didn't like people not liking me. It was not something that I had ever really experienced before, especially not after having known someone for all of one minute.

"Raven this is my _friend _Abigail Beckett." He said, putting extra emphasis on the word "friend" while giving her a warning look that clearly said "play nice". All Raven did was sceptically raise an eyebrow. "Abi, this is my sister, Raven Darkholme."

Raven casually sauntered across the room and held a hand out for me to shake. "Hello." She said, though there was no warmth in the usual greeting.

I wiggled my way out from under Charles's arm and accepted the handshake with an unsure smile.

"What's she doing here?" She asked him bitterly with a look that clearly said "I don't want her here".

For the first time I saw Charles look quite irritated and his jaw tightened when he replied. "Because she's my friend." He said simply.

There was a silence throughout the room as the two stared at each other, seeming to have some sort of mental conversation with their eyes.

"Fine." She spat out finally. "I have to go anyways." And with that she grabbed her coat giving me one last nasty look and left.

Feeling rather awkward just stood in the middle of the room, I watched as Charles huffed and ran his hands through his hair.

"I am so sorry about that." He apologized with exasperation clear in his voice. "I don't know what's gotten into her. I swear I'll take to her later."

I forced myself to smile. "No it's fine." I replied unconvincingly.

"No it isn't." He insisted. Now he seemed to be quite angry as he approached me. "She has no right to treat you that way."

He drew me into a tight hug to which I couldn't think of any appropriate way to respond to other than half-heartedly linking my hands around his back.

My first meeting with his "sister" had not gone well as I had feared. His eyes widened as he realized where my train of thought was taking me.

"This does not change anything between us alright? I'm going to be your friend whether she likes it or not." He swore resolutely with that trademark cheeky grin on his face.

I grinned back but my heart wasn't in it as I'm sure he knew. Without his "sister's" approval, how we were supposed to spend time together? Would we forever have to meet at awkward times and places to avoid her? Would we forever be confined to hanging out in my dorm instead of his? Without his "sister's" support, our entire friendship was thrown into question.

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><p>I didn't understand at the time why she didn't like me. I hadn't given her any reason not to like me. That was the thing. My very existence was a threat to her. I just didn't see that at the time. All I saw was a beautiful young woman who was being horrible to me for no reason. Perhaps some of her fears did have some sort of reasoning behind them. I couldn't protect him when it counted. I couldn't protect her. She has every reason to hate me now. I'm so sorry Raven.<p> 


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Sorry this chapters a little late than I told some of you. It took a little longer than I thought to write this one but it's here! Thank you again to everyone that's reviewed! I'm afraid there isn't a lot of humour or action in this chapter but it was a chapter that needed to happen. That actually might be why it took longer to write...Anyways, I hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Blah blah blah you know how this goes.  
><strong>

**Chapter 3**

It took a while for us to reach a sort of…mutual agreement. Raven and I, that is. It seems so inconsequential now, our silly disagreements. Really, we had the same interests at heart. We're actually quite similar people in some ways. Perhaps that's why we never got along. Opposites attract and similarities oppose. That scares me sometimes, how truly similar we are. It makes me think about all the choices she's made and if things had been different, would I have made the same ones? Would I have turned back on my best friends? Would I have put all of humanity at risk? I don't think I would, or rather; I like to think that I wouldn't. I like to think there are enough contrasts between us that I would do things differently. But sometimes I wonder…

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><p>November 1955, Oxford University<p>

Christmas spirit had definitely taken over the hallowed halls of Oxford University. Never mind the fact that Christmas wasn't for another whole month; it didn't stop anybody from throwing tinsel around like loonies. Of course, this also meant that everyone was trying to get their Christmas shopping in early to avoid the last minute present buying push. Nobody seemed to realize that if everyone had that attitude (which they did) then everyone would be out shopping at the same time anyways, therefore defeating the point. I know that makes me seem quite cynical but I'm not really. I loved Christmas and found it more funny than anything else that everyone thought they had a fool proof plan to avoid the packed shopping centres. In fact, I was probably the most holiday spirited out of everyone I know and was not adverse to wandering the Oxford grounds in a Santa hat, but it had to at least be December before I would consider it.

Unfortunately, no amount of Christmas spirit could change Raven's obvious dislike for me and it actually was beginning to put a strain on mine and Charles's friendship. Whenever the two of us were together and having a laugh she always seemed to magically appear and make everything awkward as they talked and I just sort of sat there. Charles noticed of course, but there wasn't a whole lot he could do to change her opinion of me. She just seemed to have this unexplainable, innate hatred of me that didn't show any signs of going away anytime soon.

I found myself pondering this problem while sat on my sofa with a lovely cup of tea and plate of crumpets. My room often smelt of tea; I drank that much of it. It's a good thing I didn't take any sugar with mine otherwise I would be quite worried for my health.

My head whipped to the side as someone knocked on my door.

"Come in!" I yelled, reluctant to leave my warm food and drink.

Charles poked his head around the doorway and his mouth twitched into a sort of nervous smile. I smiled back and gestured for him to sit with me. He slowly walked over to me and sat so far away that he might as well have stayed standing. Confused, I asked him if he would like something to drink and he shook his head. My eyebrow rose in surprise. Charles has never refused a nice cup of tea when I offered. Something was definitely wrong.

"Are you alright?" I asked him, almost afraid to hear the answer.

He nodded hastily. "Yeah, I'm fine."

I nodded awkwardly. This was weird…I think the silence that followed was probably the longest we've ever had. I just sort of glanced at him every now and again while drinking my tea, waiting for him to say whatever he'd come here to say.

He shifted in his seat to face me. "Listen Abigail, here's the thing." Oh no. He'd never used my full name before. "We can't be friends anymore."

I froze and felt a familiar sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. I tried to smile and laugh it off. "What do you mean?"

A flash of annoyance crossed his face, a look I'd never seen on him before. "I mean we can't be friends anymore." He said again more forcefully.

My throat constricted and all I could do was stare at him in shock. I tried to swallow to make my throat feel less dry but really all it did was prompt tears in my eyes. That was it. She'd succeeded. She'd persuaded him to not be my friend anymore. She'd forced us apart and now I'd lost the only true friend I'd ever had. And I'd only had him for three months.

"This is because of Raven isn't it?" I croaked, blocking my face with my fringe so that even if he could hear me cry, he couldn't see me.

I felt him move uncomfortably. "Me and Raven…"

"Raven and I." I interrupted, looking back at him suspiciously. That was quite an obvious mistake to make and Charles was a borderline genius. Geniuses didn't make obvious mistakes like that.

"Raven and I," He began again, nervously looking anywhere but me. "We just feel like being around you isn't a good idea anymore. I've got to concentrate on my studies and I'm spending less and less time with Raven."

I knit my eyebrows. "You don't need to study any more than you already do Charles and if anything you've been spending more time with Raven and less time with me." I said bravely.

That seemed to anger him. "Look, it's just not happening alright!"

And then something happened which only confirmed my suspicions that something wasn't right. His eyes flashed gold. If there was anything about Charles which always stood out appearance-wise it was his blue eyes and for them to flash gold was like a warning bell that it wasn't him.

"You're not Charles." I accused him/her/it (it could have been any of the three for all I knew).

Then his face went from angry to furious. "Of course I'm Charles!" He/she/it insisted vehemently.

"No you're not." I argued back, strangely calm and sure of myself. "Charles has never called me by full name, he's never acted angry towards me before and, most importantly, he would never make such an obvious grammatical error."

"Are you calling me stupid?" He/she/it asked incredulously. And then he changed.

His entire body seemed to peel away, starting with his face. The pale skin, blue eyes and perfectly coiffed hair were stripped away to reveal hair that was a striking red colour, yellow/gold eyes that reminded me of a cat and scaly blue skin. My breath was absolutely taken away. Another mutant. But this person had the most beautiful mutation I'd ever seen.

"No, I'm not calling you stupid." I said after finally finding my voice. "But may I ask who you are?"

She glared at me and I watched as she transformed into a tall women with beautiful blonde waves. I watched transfixed and actually couldn't decide whether I found her more beautiful with blue skin or not. Though there was nothing beautiful about the dirty look she was sending my way.

"I should have known." I berated myself softly.

Of course it was going to be Raven. Who else would be so eager to break us up other than her? Though I suppose part of it had to do with the fact that some small part of me actually thought that maybe it was actually true. Raven did mean an awful lot to Charles and I didn't think it was beyond the realms of imagination to think that he would choose her over me.

Raven continued to look at me angrily with her arms crossed. I looked back self-consciously and decided to take a chance.

"Why do you hate me so much?" I asked. I just had to know what it was about me that made her despise me.

For a moment she looked quite awkward and shocked. "I don't hate you." She said uneasily.

"Really? So all of those glares you keep sending my way are just tender looks of love?" I surprised even myself that I was brave enough to be sarcastic in this situation.

"O-of course not! Don't be stupid." She replied unsurely.

"There must be some reason." I said, scooting closer to her.

Still, she refused to reply or even look in my direction, choosing to look indifferently around the room.

Now I was becoming angry. "Listen here Raven. Charles means a lot to me and I would very much like to be his friend without you butting in every two seconds trying to break us apart. I'm not sure whether you understand this but he is the first real friend I've ever and I'll be damned if I'm going to give him up that easily. He means far too much to me for you to just take him away from me like that!" It took me until the end of this speech to realize my eyes had begun to water again.

Raven went very quiet and still. "I do understand."

My mood dropped. Of course she understood. She had blue skin for God's sake and, as wonderful as I thought it was, there were probably a lot of people who would disagree. She probably hadn't had many friends herself. Blue skin isn't something as easy to hide as being able to make force fields.

"It's just…" She began, clearly upset. "Charles is the only real friend I've ever had too. It was always just me and him. And then you showed up and everything's different. He's always off with you and whenever he comes home he always talks about you."

I waited patiently as she began to cry herself.

"I suppose I was just…jealous." She admitted. "I didn't want to have to share him with anyone and I just didn't want him to get hurt."

I moved closer and wrapped my little arms around her shaking body. It all seemed so obvious now. I'd moved in on Charles and disrupted their relationship. If anything, I was to blame for this animosity rather than Raven. It was only natural that she would want to protect him. A wave of sympathy and guilt washed over me.

"I'm sorry." I said sincerely.

She drew away quite quickly and I envied her for a second. Even crying with a red face and puffy eyes she still looked beautiful.

"What do you mean you're sorry? I'm the one who's been making your life a living hell!"

"Yes…" I nodded slowly. "But it was me coming here that started it all."

"Actually Charles throwing a chair at you started it all."

I laughed. "He told you about that, did he?"

She chuckled a little through her tears. "Yeah. "

Wiping her eyes on her sleeves she sniffed and looked at me strangely. "You know, I can see why Charles likes you."

I raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yeah. You're actually really nice." She said bashfully while blushing, as if she was embarrassed to admit it.

"Well, you're not too bad yourself." I said with what I hoped was a kind and reassuring smiled.

We stayed like that, two girls sat laughing with their arms around each other and tears in their eyes for a little longer. It was almost as if we were actually friends. That would be nice. No more fighting or awkward silences when we were in the same room and I could actually hang out with Charles whenever I wanted without having to worry about whether his "sister" was about to arrive. Daring to hope, I risked it.

"So…does this mean we're okay now?" I asked as casually as I could.

She looked up at me (a moment I treasured due to the five inch difference between our heights) and smiled hesitantly. "Yeah."

I gave a small smile back though on the inside I was ready to burst. Maybe the Christmas spirit really had begun. And it wasn't even December yet.

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><p>Our relationship was still far from perfect. We had a very love-hate relationship from then on; arguing one minute and then laughing like the best of friends the next. But when it came down to it, we respected each other. She really was one of the bravest people I'd ever met. To know have to constantly hide who you are and still find it in herself to smile was a trait of hers I had always admired. If Charles was the greatest man I've ever known, then Raven was by far the greatest woman.<p> 


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I'm so sorry I've been MIA for the last couple of weeks! I'm quite a clumsy person you see and decided it was a good idea to spill boiling water all down my front. I was in the hospital with second degree burns and haven't been able to move or anything without this blinding pain in my stomach. It's fine now, though I might end up with a scar for my troubles on my stomach...not happy but it's might fault for not paying more attention. I'm back now though! I hope to get another chapter up this week for you before I go on holiday for two weeks which means no updates for a while then. But I'm taking my laptop with me so I'll make sure I come home with plenty of new chapters for you! Thank you for sticking with me! I hope you enjoy and review please!**

**Disclaimer: Yadda, yadda, ya...**

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><p><strong>Chapter 4<strong>

He helped me so much and in so many ways. I suppose that's what real friends are supposed to do. Sometimes, I don't even know if he knew that he was helping me but he was. I hope I've returned the favour at some point. It wouldn't be fair if he didn't get something out of being my friend when I was getting so much. I maintain to this day that I really lucked out in the friend department when I found him (or when he found me and threw a chair at me). I hope that someday we can be like that again. I don't know what I'll do otherwise.

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><p>February, Oxford University<p>

Christmas had come and gone (yes, I spent most of it wearing my Santa hat) as well as New Years and whatever trace of the holidays had even happened had left. There was no more tinsel, no more fairy lights draped over every street light and whatever enjoyment we'd derived from the snow was short lived as that too melted as soon as the holiday season was over. Yet, I was still in a very holiday-ish mood; probably because, for me, the holidays weren't over yet. For everyone else the next holiday was Valentine's Day, but there was another one far sooner that was a tradition in my family. Just thinking about it made me feel quite wistful. This year would be the first one where I wouldn't be with my family to celebrate. But wistful thoughts weren't getting me anywhere; if anything they were just distracting me.

Sat in my dorm, I flexed my fingers as if it would somehow help. With all the force and intent I could muster, I threw my hand out in front of me. No purple field appeared. My shoulders slumped. It was going to be another one of those nights.

Every other day I would sit like this in intense concentration trying desperately to get a hold of my powers; to find out how it worked and how to do it on command. Some days were more successful than others and the reason why still alluded me.

Tonight, however, was frustrating me more than usual. Each time I splayed my hand and failed, I became more and more angry with myself. I didn't understand why I couldn't do it. I flailed my arms around wildly in some sort of hope that it would work. When it didn't, I grunted furiously and slumped into my sofa, tears beginning to accumulate at the corner of my eyes. That awful choking feeling overtook me and I broke down. Tears gushed down my face and, yet again, I didn't understand why.

There was a light, and almost hesitant, knock on my door. I hastily wiped the tears from my face and wrapped my dressing gown around me tighter. I wasn't going to be fooling whoever was on the other side of that door though. I wasn't a pretty or particularly clean crier and when I started I could never really stop.

I opened the door and Charles tentatively smiled at me, holding a box of chocolates. My face softened and I wanted to cry even more. He really was a sweet man to bring me chocolate when he knew I needed it. Another part of me wondered how he even knew…

"I heard you from my room." He explained while tapping the side of his head. Of course.

I thanked him gratefully and sniffled slightly, side-stepping to allow him to come in. He rubbed my arm affectionately as he passed and headed straight for the kitchen. He'd been here so many times now that he knew where everything in my dorm was and he correctly assumed that I would be in need of a nice cup of tea. Bringing the steaming drink and chocolates to me, he sat on the sofa and drew me into his arms.

I curiously, turned the chocolates over in my hands. "Aren't these the chocolates Jessica bought for you?"

He shifted positions awkwardly. "Yes."

I looked at him half in amusement and half in offence. "So you're giving me your ex-girlfriends used chocolates?"

"They're not used. They haven't even been opened." He defended himself. "And she's my _ex-_girlfriend. I'm sure she won't mind. And even if she did, she gave them to me so I can do with them what I please."

A smile threatened to peak and in the end I began to giggle uncontrollably. Then the tears resurfaced and I sobbed into Charles's shoulder as he rubbed my back soothingly. I just couldn't stop and whenever I tried to speak I was so choked up that I couldn't get any words to come out without making the weeping worse. I wanted to apologize and explain how I didn't even really know why I was so upset in the first place but I knew that, even if I couldn't voice these thoughts, Charles already knew. He softly spoke comforting words into my ear and held me close until I finally reached a point where my body had stopped violently shaking and I could finally talk again.

"I know that you already know this but I'm so sorry." I said quietly, wiping my face on my dressing gown.

"Don't be silly, I wouldn't be here if I didn't want to be." He assured me, passing me the cup of tea and chocolates.

I appreciatively dug into the box of chocolates and gulped down the tea. The mix of melted chocolate and the warm liquid was like a God-send. Charles was a God-send. I've never really believed in God before but if he did exist, he was being the kindest he'd ever been to me by sending me this wonderful man bearing chocolate treats.

"Why thank you." He said with a bright, and almost smug, smile.

"Oh shut up." I muttered, playful shoving him. "At least you can use your powers!"

Charles's smile dropped and he stared at me soulfully. "That's what this is about isn't it."

Staring at my lap, I shrugged reluctantly. "I don't know. It's always been pretty hit-and-miss but tonight it just really got to me for some reason."

He nodded, deep in thought and then looked at me intensely. "May I?" He asked, gesturing vaguely at my head.

He wanted to read my mind to find out what was wrong. That was strange; he'd never asked for permission before. He just sort of…did it and I'd never had a problem with that. In my opinion, there shouldn't be any secrets between friends and that degree of honesty is what makes your bond stronger. I suppose he thought that what might be disturbing me might be something personal that I didn't want anyone to know. But I trusted him. So I nodded.

He repositioned himself so that he could look directly into my eyes and pressed his fingers to the side of his temple.

It was a strange feeling, knowing that someone was in your head. I couldn't really physically feel anything out of the ordinary; I felt the same. It was the penetrating stare he gave me and just knowing that he could potentially know everything there is to know about me, things that perhaps I didn't even know about myself. It made me a little uncomfortable, being this exposed, and I found myself craving for him to finally find what he was looking for.

His gaze softened and his hand dropped back to his side. "You're just feeling a little homesick." He informed me gently. "And if it makes you feel any better, I didn't look any further than that."

Homesick. I was feeling homesick. That seemed so…mundane, obvious and a little silly. I was an eighteen year old woman; I didn't need my family's constant company. I was just fine on my own. I actually felt quite embarrassed after putting Charles through all that trouble when really I was just missing home a little. Really, that was something that I should be able to deal with on my own. But at least I knew that Charles cared enough to be concerned. As much as I knew that already, it was nice to be reassured that there's someone out there who worried about you.

"You always spend Chinese New Year with them, don't you?" Charles said.

I nodded, bleary eyed.

He scooted closer to me on the sofa and scooped me back into his arms. "Talk to me."

I paused as I struggled to find the words to describe the joy that was felt on this occasion. We kept to most traditions as my mother and maternal grandparents insisted. There was only really one that we didn't obey. Chinese New Year actually spanned several days but we celebrated it over the course of two days. On the first day, my maternal grandparents would arrive and together the entire family would clean the house together, supposedly to rid the house of any ill-fortune. Then we would decorate the house and I would help grandma make the jiaozi for the supper feast. The night would end with us sat around the family table playing cards and board games until the clock struck twelve when we would pass around presents and release a single red lantern into the sky. It was always and always will be one of my favourite times of the year. Even my father would join in even though he wasn't Chinese. I always admired how fully he embraced my mother's culture. He really did love her.

"It sounds wonderful." He whispered, almost mournfully.

Of course. Charles parents had never been there for him. They were always too busy with their work to pay any sort of attention to him. He was brilliant child; top of his class and had plenty of friends. Not that his parents ever knew. It wasn't until he gained entry to Oxford two years ago (yes, Charles was the same age as me and had already been here for two years) that his parents took any kind of notice in him. By then though, he was old enough and smart enough to know that if he hadn't been intelligent then they wouldn't have cared. So he took it upon himself to cut off all contact with them just as they had already done to him. Usually, it didn't bother him. But talking about how close my family was must have made him wish that he could have had the same.

I turned to face him. "Hey, you have a family. You have Raven and you have me and we love you. Who needs them when you have the best family anyone could ever ask for right here."

Looking like he was going to cry himself, he nodded and smiled. "Thank you."

I smiled widely and rested my head in the crook of his neck. We sat in silence, merely enjoying each other's company. Then I frowned slightly as I thought of a burning question that I'd always wanted to know the answer to.

"Charles?" He hummed in answer. "Why do you sometimes put your fingers on our temple when you're reading minds because you don't always do it?"

He didn't reply. A smile crept onto my face as he teased him.

"You do it because it looks cool don't you?"

"…Maybe."

And we laughed until it hurt.

The clock struck twelve and we both turned to glance it and then each other.

Charles smiled. "Happy Chinese New Year Abi."

* * *

><p>He always spent every Chinese New Year with me from then on. He'd knock on my door and we'd play cards and eat jiaozi I'd make (not as good as Grandma's) until the clock struck twelve. Then we'd sneak out of our dorms and light a single red lantern, release it into the sky and make a wish. My wish was always the same every year. I would wish that nothing would change. I would wish that things would stay the same and that Charles, Raven and I would always stay together and that we'd always love each other. I would wish that we'd always be a family. I didn't get that wish.<p> 


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: So this it! Last chapter until I come back from my holidays in two weeks. I promise I'll keep on writing so that the moment I come back I can upload a new one for you. Until then, enjoy and review please!**

**Dicslaimer: ...(insert disclaimer here)**

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><p><strong>Chapter 5<strong>

We thought we were alone for so long. Just me, Charles and Raven. Different. Unique. One (or three) of a kind. Nobody could do what we could do. It turns that we were a lot less different than we thought. There were others just like us who knew how we felt and what it was like to not quite fit in to normal society. Mutants. That's what they called us. A name for people who weren't quite "human". But what does being "human" even mean? Because if being human meant acting like other humans did, I'm not sure I even want to be human.

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><p>April, Oxford University<p>

Tonight was one of those nights where you feel like breaking that routine that you have set for yourself. On Saturday nights, my usual routine consisted of reading, writing papers and generally sitting in my dorm feeling very bored but not bored enough to actually do something about it. So being sat in a bar with Raven having my…third pint (I think) was definitely a break in the mould.

Raven eyed me, perfect posture and drink in her hand. She sighed and nudged me with her foot. "At least look like you're interested!" She huffed.

I blinked. Had she been talking? I hadn't been paying attention. "Sorry, what were you saying?"

She slyly smiled and gestured across the bar. "That guy over there has been watching you for the past, I don't know, hour?"

I tried to sneak a look at the man in question without being too obvious. He was handsome, no doubt about it. Perhaps his nose was a little on the large side and he would no doubt tower over my 5'2" frame but that wasn't enough to put me off. He had mesmerizing dark eyes, curly blonde hair and an air of maturity about it. Completely different to Charles, I noticed. He smiled and waved at me. Immediately looking away, I felt a blush creep up my neck. So much for being sneaky.

Even with my face covered, I could practically see Raven's smirk. "He likes you!" She teased, shoving my playfully.

"Shut up!" I grunted.

"What?" She defended, crossing her legs on the bar stool with an impish smile. "He obviously does. Do you like him?"

"Raven!" I squealed, absolutely mortified. "I haven't even talked to him!"

"Well go talk to him then."

I rolled my eyes. That was so easy for her to say. She was tall, blonde and gorgeous (or tall blue and gorgeous depending on the circumstances). I was short, dull brown and "cute" as I've been told. But cute didn't get guys. Cute made guys go "awww, you're my new best friend!". Gorgeous made guys go "yeah, I'd date her!".

"Well don't look now but it doesn't look you have a choice because he's coming this way."

My head shot up to look at her. She merely smiled mischievously and twisted around in her seat to face the blonde stranger who was indeed walking our way. He had a nice walk, I noticed; good posture and a confident, natural swagger.

"Hey girls." He acknowledged us with a smile and tip of the head.

I let Raven reply for the both of us, mainly because my voice didn't seem to be working.

"Hey!" She replied cheerfully, casting me a side-look. "Raven Darkholme."

"Owen Parkin." He introduced himself, though he never took his eyes off me. "And you are?"

"Abigail Beckett." I answered shyly. "But everybody calls me Abi."

"Abi then." A heart-melting grin later and I was sold.

Glancing between the two of us, Raven grinned. "Well if you two'll just excuse me." And giving me one last pointed look, she left me! I gaped after her. Well what a fantastic wing-woman she was!

"Are you alright?" Owen asked curiously, gently laying a hand on my arm.

My eyes darted to his warm hand on my bare skin and I immediately clamped my mouth shut. I smiled reassuringly at him. "Yes, I'm fine."

He nodded, clearly unconvinced. We sat in awkward silence, the tension between us almost palpable. I swirled my drink around in my glass, watching the liquid slosh from side to side; anything so that I didn't have to look at his charming face. Then I feared the contents of my stomach would begin to mimic my rippling beer.

"So what would it take to get a girl like you to go out with me?"

I froze and found myself compelled to look at him to see if he was serious. That was very…up-front of him. He only knew my name and he wanted to take me out?

I laughed. "A lot of luck."

His eyes seemed to twinkle knowingly as I spoke. "Really? Because Lady Luck's always been very kind to me."

I laughed again, half in shock. He was an absolute scoundrel! But for some reason, I was considering it. I didn't know whether it was the drink talking or whether it was the atmosphere in the bar but just for once I wanted to do something different, something impulsive. It went against everything I believed in but it just felt right. He seemed like a nice man and he was interested in _me_! Not drop-dead gorgeous Raven who had been sat next to me all night; me!

So I gave him a winning smile and nodded. "Okay."

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><p>"What were you thinking?" Charles asked incredulously, pacing my dorm and running his fingers through his hair.<p>

I sighed while brushing my own hair through, experimenting with different ways of putting my hair up. Pulling a face, I let my hair drop again. "I was thinking that a nice man had asked me out and who was I to say no to that?"

"Do you know anything about him apart from his name?"

I moaned. "That's the whole point of a date Charles; to get to know each other!"

"But you don't know _anything_ about him!" He insisted, determined that I wasn't going to go out with him.

"Well, unfortunately, it isn't up to you who I go out with." I huffed, angry and more than a little upset. I didn't understand why he couldn't just let me do what I wanted. It may not turn out to the smartest decision I've ever made but it was my mistake to make. At least then I could say that I had done something spontaneous in my life.

There was a knock on my door and I bounded out of my seat. Charles was already next to it however and despite my protests took it upon himself to answer it. Sure enough, Owen was inside looking as handsome as ever and with a bouquet of roses. For a flash, he looked surprised but that quickly withered away and was replaced by a look of contempt.

"Um hello?" He greeted us unsurely, quickly glancing at me from over Charles's shoulder (or over the top of Charles's head; he was easily tall enough to reach). I shrugged apologetically and stepped forward to accept the flowers.

"Thank you Owen, they're beautiful." I said sincerely. _If he knew you he would know that red and white carnations are your favourites and that you think roses are cliché. _I smiled and tried to push Charles's voice out of my head.

Owen rubbed his hands together nervously. "So are you ready to go?"

I nodded. "Yes, just let me find somewhere to put these."

So I scarpered off to find that vase my mother had made me. She was good at making things out of glass. It took quite bit longer than I thought it would however and by the time I entered the living room again, Charles was smiling brightly at Owen, standing as straight as he could to rival Owen's huge figure, while Owen looked like he'd had all of the colour drained from his face. My smiled slipped.

"Is everything alright?" I asked cautiously.

"Fine!" Owen answered a little too quickly with a shaky smile. "I, uh, j-just remembered that I have to be somewhere! I'll see you around Abi." And he rushed out of the door without a second glance.

My mouth fell open and tears pricked in my eyes. I turned and glared at the clear culprit who looked like he'd just done a job well done. "What did you do?" I shrieked, collapsing back onto my sofa.

He looked quite shocked. "I just saved you from having to go out with a fake!" He yelled right back.

"What are you talking about?" I whispered furiously.

"He's like us Abi! He's a mutant!"

I paused and stared at him. "What difference does that make?" I insisted.

He closed his eyes and seemed to calm down a fraction. "Because he was using his power to get you to go out with him."

"What do you mean?" I asked hesitantly.

"He controls probability or luck. How likely do you think you would have been to accept if it wasn't for his power?"

I went quiet, considering what he'd said. It did seem very out of character for me to do something so brash. But at the time it seemed so natural…until I remembered what he'd said. _"Really? Because Lady Luck's always been very kind to me."_ I was so stupid. I didn't know anything about him and I had been willing to take that risk? How could I have not seen it? I turned my on him; I didn't want to face him.

I felt the sofa sink as Charles sat next to me and gathered me into his arms. "It's not your fault." He murmured.

"But I should have seen it! It was so obvious!"

"Hey, the only reason I could see it was because I could see into his mind." I continued to sob into his shoulder. "If it makes you feel any better, he thought you looked very cute."

I scoffed. Cute. I was the cute one. Never the beautiful or gorgeous one whose people's eyes are drawn to when they enter the room. Just the cute one.

"Well I think you look far too pretty to be sat in here crying on a Sunday night." He said, affectionately wiping my tears for me and encouraging me to smile.

Pretty…it was a start.

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><p>We weren't alone. There were others just like us and yet, they seemed so different too. They used powers without a care for the consequences whereas we were so calculated and careful. We wanted to be accepted. But one there were other mutants acting as they did it wasn't hard to see why humans hated us. I envied them sometimes and how they felt so comfortable with who they were that they didn't feel the need to hide. But then when you saw mutants like Erik, you couldn't help but think otherwise. Sometimes, I think it would have been better if we were alone.<p> 


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I'm back! Did you all miss me? Because I certainly missed you. Unfortunately, I didn't get quite as much writing done as I would have liked, but I did manage to write this chapter and half of the next chapter so expect that up in a few days. Also unfortunately, it may take a little longer for updates to arrive as I now have a job (I know!) and I'm preparing to go off to college. But don't worry! I'm still very committed to this story and have a clear vision in my head of where it's going. So I hope you enjoy this chapter as it is my longest, and in my opinion my most wll written, one yet. Thank you for your continued support! Enjoy and review please!**

**Disclaimer: If it wasn't obvious already, I own Abi! But nothing else...**

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><p><strong>Chapter 6<strong>

Have you ever been so attached to a person that even the thought of you being separated terrified you? Then, when you realise this, you become even more terrified that you are so attached that person? That's how I felt about Charles. We were so close that even being apart from him for a month or two saddened me. It was silly, I know. I'd only known him for a year and, even though he was telepathic, there were some things about me that I'm sure he didn't know. There just always seemed to be this natural kinship between us. Of course, things are different now. Now I might have to leave him of my own accord.

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><p>July, Oxford University<p>

It was the end of term, a time I always hated. All of the students in their last year were crying as they realised that this was their last day as a student. Tomorrow they would be adults living in a very adult world. There would be no more time for fooling around for them and I couldn't blame them for being scared. For students like me, however, who still had a few years of full-time education ahead of them, it meant saying good-bye to friends for the summer. For me, it meant saying good-bye to Charles. Him and Raven were going back to America to see Charles's parents and "pretend to be a family", as they put it, and I was going back to Canterbury to see my own family. Six weeks of the summer holidays would be spent apart and that upset me.

My bags were all packed in my room and spread out on my bed. My father would be waiting outside in the car and my mother would be sat at home waiting for my return. By all means, I was ready to go. But something held me back and I felt reluctant to leave, at least until I saw Charles.

I trudged over to their dorm and paused in front of the door. If I saw him, I knew that I would be even more reluctant to leave. I had to see him though. So I knocked on the door and held my breath as I waited. He could have already left for all I knew.

"Come in!" Charles's muffled voice called from the other side of the door.

I tentatively opened the door a crack and peaked in. Their dorm looked much like mine; unusually neat and tidy for a university student. Part of me mourned the loss of the mess of papers and books. The chaos was what gave the place character and only reminded that this was the end for now. Charles was the only one there so I assumed that Raven was off in the bedroom somewhere.

Charles smiled awkwardly. "Hello."

I gave him a small smile of my own. "Hello."

Casually tucking his hands in his pockets, he nodded, as if in answer to some unvoiced question. For some inexplicable reason, I nodded back, as if in acknowledgement of his answer to my unvoiced question.

"Charles! Which suitcase do you want me to put the toiletry bag in?" Raven asked, entering the room from the bedroom with the toiletry bag in question.

Charles sighed and rolled his eyes at me. _That's the fifth time she's come in to ask me about where to put her bloody things. _I stifled a chuckle; the bag did look a little too large for most of it to be his. He then rolled his shoulders back and turned to face her with a smile.

"You can pop them in my bag if you want." He offered.

She smiled brightly at him and then leaned to the side to smile at me. "Oh, hi Abi! I didn't see you there."

Giving a little wave, I smiled back shakily.

Oblivious to my gloomy mood, she bounded over to me. "So, are you all packed up and ready to go?" She asked cheerfully.

"Yeah," I said, trying to brighten my tone. "Dad's probably waiting for me outside in the car."

Raven nodded. Then, nothing was said as the three of us stood in a circle in the middle of their living room. The Three Musketeers, I suppose you could say. We'd been through a lot the three of us. I'd lived away from home for the first time, met a true friend in Charles and come to an accord with Raven; Charles had learnt what it was like to live outside of his parents' influence, met me (which I hope was a big event for him) and learnt that he was quite a hit with the ladies (not necessarily something I approved of but it was always amusing watching him pick up girls); and Raven had grown in confidence and self-esteem and accepted me as a part of their little family. That's what we were; our own make-shift, adopted family. We were formed out of a need to know that there was someone who could understand and found each other out of necessity. Finding each other under such circumstances might not seem too good, but it was the only way we would have met and not meeting really would have been a shame. But even though a year had gone by (at an alarming rate), hopefully it was only the first of many.

Always the first to break silence, Raven piped up merrily. "You'll have to come and visit us sometime!"

To say I was shocked would be an understatement. Though we were friends, I suppose, she'd never really voluntarily wanted to spend time. She only hung out with me if Charles asked her to, if there was nothing else she had planned or if Charles had to cancel. Her actually wanting to hang out with me spelled out another landmark in our rocky relationship and I felt more than a little warm inside.

Seemingly pleased with this himself, Charles brightened. "Yes, of course! Do you have a landline?"

Excited, I nodded. "Of course."

The two of us quickly scribbled our numbers on some scraps of paper and exchanged them, our hands lingering slightly as they touched.

"We'll be in touch to arrange something." Charles said.

"You make sure you are." I smiled.

And then the silence returned in full force and all of the happiness drained out of the room again. We couldn't stall anymore; this was it.

Charles quickly stepped forward and tightly hugged me. "Goodbye Abi." He whispered in my ear.

"Goodbye Charles." I murmured into his shoulder.

We stayed that way for as long as we reasonably could and then reluctantly parted. Turning to Raven, we stood awkwardly, neither of us sure whether we'd reached the stage where we felt comfortable hugging. Deciding to "suck it up", as my father would put it, I swiftly wrapped my arms around her, not giving her time to react. I seemed to have caught her off guard as she stiffened momentarily and then, slowly, enveloped me with her arms.

"See ya Abs." She said, her voice choked with emotion.

I smiled. "Abs". That was a new one, and yet, not an unwelcome one. "Goodbye Raven."

Drawing away, I saw a glint of moisture on Raven's face before it was hastily wiped away. It was nice to know that separating wasn't only a sad affair for me. Nodding once at them both, I hesitated slightly and then, realising that if I didn't leave now I never would, I turned around and left. Like ripping off a plaster, only much more painful.

Absolutely refusing to look back, I strode into my room, grabbed my bags and powered out of there. Seeing my father's car on the opposite side of the street, I quickly crossed the road, dumped my bags in the boot and shuffled into the front passenger seat.

"Somebody's in a hurry." He quipped with a raised eyebrow.

Forcing myself to smile, I turned to him with a raised eyebrow of my own. "Nice to see you too dad."

Chuckling with his deep baritone voice, he stroked my hair affectionately. "Always a pleasure Abi."

This time, my smile was real.

Shifting back into his driving position, he started the car. "So how was school?" He asked, perfectly innocently. After all, he hadn't seen me since Christmas.

Looking out of the car window, I caught a glimpse of Charles's dorm window. He stood there waving at me with that twinkle in his eye that I could see even from the ground. I grinned at him and then turned to address my father.

"It was alright."

* * *

><p>Three hours later, Canterbury<p>

Home was nice. Very normal (or as normal as my crazy British/Asian could be). It was very…cosy. Mother had been waiting by the window for my arrival as expected. She'd had my favourite meal waiting (salad, strange, I know) as well as a cup of tea, as expected. Within moments, the grandparents had also been called and came to welcome me home, as expected. When asked about school, I would just say that it was a privilege to attend such an esteemed school and that it lived up to all of my expectations. When asked about whether I'd made any friends, I briefly mentioned Charles and Raven, glossing over some of the finer details. When asked if they knew about my…powers, I said that not only did they know but they understood, having powers of their own. Delighted to hear this, mother said that she couldn't wait to meet them someday. For hours it was like this, them asking question after question about what life was like at university. It was nice to be the centre of attention, I admit. But I also couldn't wait to steal away to my room and have some quiet time to myself.

Finally breaking away by claiming that I felt tired, I went straight to my room and lay on my bed. It was strange to sleep in my old bed again. It almost didn't feel like mine anymore. I remember when I used to go on holiday, after sleeping in a different bed for a week or two, returning to my own bed felt strange. But I'd been gone for a whole year. Now my bed didn't feel like it belonged to me anymore. The bed at university belonged to me, but for some reason, my bed at home didn't feel the same anymore. I knew it was silly and that in a few weeks everything would go back to normal and I'd feel at home again but for now it just felt…odd.

While lying on my bed, I couldn't help my thoughts straying to Charles. Would he be talking about me like I'd just been talking about him? Would his parents ask him if he'd made any new friends (unlikely considering their lack of involvement in his life but it was possible!)? Would he tell his parents about my mutation? Did they even know about his mutation? What would he say about me? The paranoia was maddening and quite…enlightening.

I'd always claimed to be a modern woman; an independent woman. That was one of the reasons for moving so far away for university, to assert my independence. I didn't need anybody's help and I was always quick to jump on anyone who implied otherwise. Yet, I was very dependent on Charles. Technically, my relationship with Charles went against everything I believed in. What did that make me? I didn't want to be that woman that was completely dependent on a man (even if our relationship was purely platonic). I'd seen it happen before and usually the woman wasn't very happy. I did not want to be that woman. But what was I supposed to do? Not be friends with him? I didn't think I could do that. It was then that I realised. I didn't have any other friends. There was only, and had only ever been, Charles and Raven. The greatest fiends I could have ever asked for. But they were the only ones. I had acquaintances of course though they were mainly the people in the same class as me who I chatted with occasionally. My days were spent either in class, hanging out with Charles and Raven or sat in my room reading like the loner I was if Charles and Raven weren't available. They weren't always free to spend time with me as they each had friends of their own and other things to do. I didn't. Perhaps that's what I needed. Other friends whose company I enjoyed to hang out with; a true girlfriend that I could tell everything to when Raven and I weren't speaking to each other. Perhaps moving further away from Charles and Raven would help. Still close enough to visit, but far enough away to force me to make new friends. That was it then. I had to make new relations, because, one day, maybe they wouldn't be there.

* * *

><p>I didn't know how right I was at the time. Charles and Raven <em>wouldn't <em>always be there. Dependency on one or two people is never a good thing. Because no matter how much you trust them, you never know when they may hurt you.


End file.
